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The archaeology department recently finished its field season in the South Yard and just began an analysis of all the artifacts recovered during the nine-month excavation season. The analysis of the household items recovered from the South Yard will be very important for our overall archaeological study of Montpelier’s enslaved community.

Christmas day has come and gone at Montpelier and like Christmas, New Year’s Day gave the Madisons and their contemporaries an opportunity to send holiday greetings to family and friends along with wishes for a prosperous and healthy year to come.

During the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, Christmas was primarily celebrated through fellowship, festive entertainment, visits to neighbors and family, and holiday tidings sent to friends and loved ones. While there is no evidence to suggest that holiday decorations were placed in the interior or the exterior of Montpelier during the Madisons’ time, James and Dolley had other Christmas traditions.

This week we are putting the South Yard to bed for the winter after a long and productive season. We opened up an area 85′x45′ (approximately 180 5ft. x 5ft. units) and completely exposed two house areas in the South Yard. The South Yard is the site for the homes and work areas for the Madisons’ house slaves.

‘Tis the season for holiday traditions: decorating, baking, caroling and shopping are underway across the country. As we prepare for ”A Christmas Evening at Montpelier,” we’re also decking the halls with modern and Madison-era works of art to show our guests.

The Joe and Marge Grills Gallery is now showcasing a series a of historical images, objects, and artwork depicting the Montpelier estate. The exhibit is comprised of works from the early nineteenth to late twentieth centuries, and includes Anna Maria Brodeau Thornton’s 1802 watercolor, View of Montpelier.

Mr. Marion Broglie, a long-time participant in the Center for the Constitution’s seminars for teachers, recently took a few moments to share his thoughts on his professional development experiences. Mr. Broglie is an eighth grade civics teacher at Lynnhaven Middle School in Virginia Beach, Va.

The Madisons’ preference for stylish furnishings, as seen throughout the interior spaces of Montpelier, is further exhibited in a new installation in the Dining Room. On Friday, November 18, 2011, with assistance from historic textile consultant Natalie Larson, reproduction window treatments, including salmon colored silk drapery with green lining, sheer dimity under-curtains, and cornices decorated in the neoclassical style of John and Hugh Finlay’s Baltimore painted furniture, were installed in the Montpelier Dining Room.

Movements of people toward greater self-governance sometimes struggle to gain lasting hold, but there is a determination in the human spirit that drives these movements toward freedom. And it often takes multiple attempts at revision to eventually get it right.